Becoming Extraordinary
by LolaSoph
Summary: Richard Rodgers and Kate Beckett both seem to be clueless when it comes to making friends. Feeling out of phase much? This is a story of childhood, of love and of meeting because it was destiny. A story about the process of becoming extraordinary.
1. Chapter 1 : Experiencing Loneliness

**Disclaimer:**** I own nothing Castle-related and I am not making money by writing this fanfiction. However, I do own the idea and the characters I myself invented that appear in this story.**

**Summary:**** Richard Rodgers and Kate Beckett both seem to be clueless when it comes to making friends. Feeling out of phase much? This is a story of meeting because it was destiny, of childhood, and of love. A story about the process of becoming extraordinary.**

**Author's Note:**** So this is my first story in English – be kind to me, as it is not my mother tongue. I'd like to thank Emanuelle (Her tumblr: **.com/) **for being my beta-reader and talking me into publishing these first chapters. **

**Music being one of the things that really help me getting through a story, I would like to offer you these titles of songs that accompany this first chapter. They are all songs I cherish with all my heart and you will probably find a pattern while listening to them… they do have something to do with this chapter.**

**I will probably give you a collection of song titles at the beginning of each chapter to, let's say, put you in the mood as you read. **

_**Astronaut – Simple Plan**_

_**The Deep End – Josie Nelson**_

_**A Place in this World – Taylor Swift**_

_**Get it Right – Lea Michele**_

_**Everyday – Toby Lightman**_

_**A Lonely September – Plain White t's**_

**Without further talking, here's the first chapter. Hope you like it!**

**Chapter one: Experiencing Loneliness**

'Richard, sweetheart, I'm _sorry_ but I really _can't_ stay home with you. If I don't go to that rehearsal, I…' Martha tried to explain as she walked into her son's bedroom, holding her purse in one hand and waving dramatically with the other.

The teenager looked up at her with sad and feverish eyes, his forehead shiny with sweat. He was shivering and his mother sat down beside him to adjust the covers above his shoulders.

'It's okay, mother, I'm not a little kid anymore, I can take care of myself' he said, offering her a weak smile.

'Oh, don't be silly, everyone needs someone to take care of them when they're sick, do you want me to call Sarah?'

'Mom, it's been _three years_ since you last called Sarah, I'll be fine. Now, off you go!' Rick protested his voice breaking at the end of the sentence as a cough burst in his throat.

'_Fine_. Make sure you eat something, darling. There's chicken soup powder somewhere, you just gotta boil some water and…'

'I _know_, mom, I've been here on my own before if you recall.'

Martha gave in a sigh.

'Okay. Call me if it gets worse, okay?'

'I will. And you go kick some dramatic asses' Rick smiled.

'I will, I will' she said before leaning in to kiss his forehead.

She looked at her watch and gave out a cry that resonated in her son's aching head.

'Oh my god, I'm already late. See you later, sweetheart!'

She stormed out of the room without further considerations, allowing Rick to sink back into the covers and to pick up_ Catcher in the Rye_ which he had been reading for a few days. He smiled as Holden watched her younger sister, Phoebe, having fun on the carousel, and then frowned as he read the conclusion. He didn't quite grasp the meaning of it, and thought that maybe the author hadn't known himself.

He got up and inspected his bookshelf while placing Salinger's book on it, half expecting to find a brand new book he wouldn't have read yet. When he realized there wasn't any, he walked to the kitchen and prepared some soup for himself before lazily putting on a comfy sweater and heavy, warm socks. He was freezing and secretly wondered if it would feel quite the same to lock himself up in the freezer. He considered how cool it would be to freeze someone to death – well, how cool _the idea_ would be, since he really wasn't a psychopath – and thoughtfully drank his soup sitting in the couch, thinking.

Now that he was going to be home alone all day without a single book to read, he didn't know what to do with himself. Last time he had been sick, Sarah had been there to play with him and they had built a fort with pillows and she had read stories to him. He considered the idea of building a fort on his own but thought it wouldn't be as fun and decided against it.

Of course, there were his mother's book, but most of them were dramas or romantic stories and he was more of a science-fiction or mysteries kind of reader.

He got back to bed and stared at the ceiling, thinking about how he would have preferred going to school that day. Not that he really _liked_ school – all kids called him a weirdo and a geek because he knew all kinds of stuffs about superheroes and comic books and literature – but Monday was the day he had two hours of English to begin with and he just _loved_ that subject. Everything about toying with language and discovering new words passionated him.

That was one of the reasons most kids didn't really like him. He had been bullied for as long as he could remember for not having a father and having such a weird but beautiful mother that acted in movies and drank wine and acted like a teenager herself, and now that people had gotten used to that, they were making fun of him for being good at English composition and loving it with all he had. He felt he would _never_ understand other kids; they were mean and cruel. You always had to act like an adult, girls had to wear heels and make-up to be called pretty, otherwise they were not noticed by anyone, but if they wore _too much of them_, then they were called sluts. Boys said you were supposed to be getting girls and to have sex with them and to go to parties and to smoke like you were a grown-up, but Richard was not interested in all these things. The only things he was interested in were games and books. He didn't care much for girls; he knew that would come later, but for now he liked that he could still be a kid, and he wasn't ashamed of it. He just wished at least _someone_ would see that he was not just childish but also _human_, and mature in his own way.

Letting out a sigh, he reached for the notebook he hid under his bed and opened it to the middle, where he found a blank page. He took out a pen and began to write slowly, his head heavy from fever.

_I wish I had friends._

oOo

Kate took some books out of her locker and then tossed them in her bag, closing the door to her locker with a shove. She threw her bad over her shoulder, losing part of her balance in the movement, and made her way towards the exit door, walking against the dense stream of pupils rushing to their next class or to their lockers. She was still rather short and had trouble being noticed by the other kids as she went past them.

She had thought that entering middle school and being in 7th grade would help her make friends, but it hadn't really helped. At least back in her small Brooklyn Elementary School she had had a few good friends that she'd known since kindergarten. Now that she was in the giant school she had chosen in Manhattan – closer to both her parents' work places – she had become completely invisible.

She was delighted to find her mother waiting for her in front of the school, discretely reading a book and trying not to look like she was waiting for her kid. Kate smiled and nearly ran to her, throwing her arms around her mom's neck to greet her.

'Hey! Katie!' Johanna said before hugging her daughter back. 'How enthusiastic of you! Hasn't your day been good?'

Kate let out a sigh; her mom read her like an open book. She always could. But right now, it was a little embarrassing; she didn't want to admit to not being able to make friends only two weeks after her first day.

So she rolled her eyes instead, trying to look as self-assured as possible.

'Yeah, it was cool' she shrugged. 'I'm just glad it's over, the math course wasn't exactly what I would call _interesting_.'

Johanna let out a laugh at her daughter's attempt to sound like a teenager. Kate was becoming increasingly good at imitating them and she wouldn't be surprised if her quiet and joyful daughter turned to a real teen on the exact date of her thirteenth birthday.

'Well you can tell me all about it on the way to Hattie's. You haven't forgotten, have you?'

'Bear claws and cupcakes after school? Seriously, _mom, _how do you think I _could_ forget?' Kate said.

They walked to the dinner, Kate talking about her classes and teachers and going on and on about how _that boy was a real jerk_ and _that girl was always acting like she was sixteen when she clearly was not_. Johanna paid close attention to her daughter's way of telling her stories, quietly nodding as she noticed that her daughter still didn't seem to have made a friend.

They sat at their usual booth at the back of the store and ordered the usual while Kate went on talking about school and how _cool_ and _fun_ it all was.

Once the flow of words started to slow down and they had both gotten their cupcakes and bear claws, Johanna finally managed to ask the question that ruined all her daughter's acting.

'Katie, if it was _so much fun_, then why is that smile of yours still not reaching your eyes?'

She quirked a suggestive eyebrow and Kate took a bite of her vanilla and mocha cupcake, bending down her head. She pushed her straight hair out of her face and stared at her mom with defiant eyes. When she noticed that Johanna still didn't believe her, her smile dropped.

'Were you picked on?' her mom asked. 'If you're being picked on and it's serious you _have to _tell me, sweetie, things can go pretty far in school, I've had those cases…'

'_Mom_, I'm not being picked on or bullied or anything. I just don't have any friends, okay?'

Relieved, Johanna extended her arm over the table to stroke her daughter's cheek.

'And why is that, sweetie?'

'Because no one notices me. I'm just invisible, you know? No one pays attention to me; in fact, no one _cares_ if I'm here or not. I'm just ordinary, part of the furniture'

'Oh, _sweetie_' Johanna sighed. 'Of course you're not just a piece of furniture, it's just… I don't think you really give people the time to try and get to know you. Most of the time you just… I don't know, I think maybe you're scaring other kids off.'

'You think I'm _scaring them_?' Kate said, half smiling, half shocked.

'Well, you can be quite scary sometimes' her mom laughed as they both got up to leave, waving at Hattie as they passed the front door in a _ting_.

'I don't believe you. I'm not scary' the girl giggled.

They got into Johanna's car, which she had parked a street from Hattie's.

'Okay, perhaps you're not scary-scary, but you certainly _are_ a little bit, let's say, intimidating. You make people stare down. Even grown-ups, I mean' Johanna explained.

'Well_ maybe_, but I don't want them to be mean to me, so…'

'So you don't even give them a chance to prove you that they had no intention of being mean in the first place?'

Kate nodded reluctantly, as if it took every cell in her brain to admit it, which made Johanna laugh all the more.

'You may be intimidating and scary, but you are _not_ invisible, Katherine Beckett. And you are not ordinary. You never will be.'

'How can you be so sure?'

'Because you're a Beckett.' Johanna joked. Seeing Kate glaring at her in the rearview mirror, she completed, 'Because you were never ordinary, and because, as your mom, I can assure you that you are and always will be _extraordinary_.'

It was the first time Kate had ever been told something that important by her mom and she knew that it was an extremely important moment.

'Now promise me you'll try and get to know people before you scare them off' Johanna said with a teasing smile.

'_Okay_, I promise I'll _try._'

'No, I don't only want you to try; I want you to do it. Life can be tough sometimes and having friends to count on in difficult situations is very important'

'I promise'

There was a silence while Johanna parked the car into their garage and Kate was about to run upstairs when she suddenly turned back to her mom and kissed her cheek.

'Thanks mom. Love you'

Johanna watched her kid climb the stairs as fast as she could while screaming _Dad, we're home_ and whispered 'Love you too, kid'

xXx

**So here it is! Tell me what you thought about it? I've already got the second chapter laid down on paper, so I'll probably publish it in a few days after it's been beta-read and everything.**** Thanks for reading this!**

**Have a nice day/evening/night, wherever you are!**

**Sophie**


	2. Chapter 2 : Believing in Magic

**Disclaimer: I own nothing Castle-related and I am not making money by writing this fanfiction. However, I do own the idea and the characters I myself invented that appear in this story.**

**Summary: Richard Rodgers and Kate Beckett both seem to be clueless when it comes to making friends. Feeling out of phase much? This is a story of meeting because it was destiny, of childhood, and of love. A story about the process of becoming extraordinary.**

**Author'sNote: Thanks you guys so much for the reviews! I know I'm kind of late with this and I'm sorry about that, I've just been experiencing what it really meant to be at the university… It's a real time-sucker! Here's the second chapter to this story. I hope you like it.**

**And here's the playlist for this chapter…**

_**The Writer – Ellie Goulding**_

_**Hold On to What You Believe – Mumford & Sons**_

_**Comets – Cocoon**_

_**The Show – Lenka**_

_**You Give Me Hope – Ryan Kirkland**_

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter two: Believing in Magic**

The weekend after Kate had made her mom the promise to try and have friends, she stayed at her granddad's apartment in Manhattan for the night, a delight that she had long been denied by her parents who thought that her granddad was becoming too old to take care of his granddaughter.

As always, they had made pancakes for brunch on Saturday while Jim and Johanna were still there before settling in the couch to play scrabble on the coffee table. Kate was having a blast, laughing at all of Paul's jokes and cracking some herself, proving that the famous Beckett humor had not gotten lost through the genetic mix with Johanna's genes.

At about 5 in the afternoon, they got out of from the building wearing only sweaters to meet the nice fall weather. Kate thought that Paul was only taking her to the park, but they headed to a side of town they'd never been to together.

'Papa, where are we going?' the girl asked as they walked side by side.

'Ah, but it's a surprise, _louloute_!' he answered, using the French nickname he knew she was very fond of.

Paul had a very vast knowledge of French because he had spent a great deal of his life in France making wine with his wife, Laura, Jim's mother, who had died when Jim was still a child. After her death, Paul had taken his seven-years-old kid with him to his hometown and begun a new life there. He had never remarried – Jim once told Kate that Laura had been the love of his life, whatever _that_ meant.

'Here we are, _louloute_!' Paul said enthusiastically, tearing Kate away from her thoughts.

She looked up to a little shop topped with a colorful signboard that read _Drake__'__s__Magic__Shop_.

'A _magic_ shop?' she exclaimed, turning to her granddad in disbelief.

Noticing her obviously skeptical face, he let out a loud laughter.

'It's full of very cool stuff and the owner is a really talented guy'

'Papa, I don't _believe_ in magic!' Kate said.

'I'm not telling you about Santa or fairies, _louloute_, I'm telling you about magic tricks and playing with human minds. Isn't _that_ fascinating?'

The girl still looked doubtful.

'Remember that trick I showed you with the ice cubes and the salt?'

'Papa, I was _six_. I'm _twelve_ now' Kate said, rolling her eyes.

'Well it was cool, wasn't it? Admit it'

'It was' she nodded, a smile widening on her face.

'Well the tricks in this shop are like a thousand times better. We can learn about getting a rabbit out of a hat and cutting women in two!'

Her granddad looked so excited about the shop that Kate followed him inside, thinking to herself that he had probably not dared to go inside when he had discovered the shop because he was too old and that that was the reason why he was taking _her_. She was his excuse to be a kid, but she didn't really mind; although she often acted like she didn't care much for childish stuff, it interested her very much.

There were few people inside, one or two kids looking around in awe and a young lady reading a magazine besides the cashier. Paul went straight to her, not bothering to check if her granddaughter was following.

'I'd like to talk to Mr. Drake, please'

Kate stood right beside Paul and looked around, up and down, her mouth open in an awestruck 'o'. Suddenly, she frowned and walked silently to a white statue to examine it, until it opened an eye.

'And how may I help you, young lady?' the statue said, moving to get down from its pedestal and extending a white hand to Kate.

She shook it while her granddad made his way towards them with a smile.

'Are you Mr. Drake?'

'Currently I'm supposed to be Shakespeare but I sure am, sir' the owner of the place answered, offering him a smile.

'Well you sure seem to have a soft spot for spectacular entrances! I'm Paul Beckett, and this is my granddaughter Katie.'

'I am _enchanted_. Can I be of any help? Are you looking for something in particular?'

'Actually, no, we were just looking around, I had heard of this place and wanted to show Katie how awesome magic tricks can be'

'Well I'm sure she'll find everything she could wish for'

'Do you have a vanishing cabinet?' Paul asked, excited.

'Yes, I designed it myself. This way…' the magician motioned.

Kate watched her granddad disappear in the back of the shop with a smile. Once again, he had gotten so caught up with his childish side that he had forgotten about her presence, but she didn't really mind. In fact, she was glad he gave her this opportunity to discover more about the shop by herself without having to listen carefully to the old magician's stories.

She walked to a strange-looking closet and carefully opened its right door to an empty space. She tried to open the left door but noticed she couldn't do it without closing the other one, and when she finally did open it, a bird flew out of the closet.

She frowned and tried playing the trick again, but when it didn't work she guess there had only been one bird ready to fly out of the closet.

'Nice place isn't it?' a voice said behind her, making her jump in surprise.

She turned around to meet the eyes of a boy around her age.

He was a lot taller than she was, with big blue eyes and rebellious brown hair. He carried that look with him that belongs to boys who have grown up too fast, looking as though he hadn't eaten for months.

'Don't you have anything better to do than to startle people?' she asked, crossing her arms in front of her non-existent breasts.

He looked hurt and frowned.

'I was just trying to be nice' he answered, turning away from her.

'No, wait!' Kate said, remembering what her mom had said. _Try__not__to__scare__people__off._ 'Listen, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, you just scared me, that's all'

He gave her an apologetic smile. 'I'm sorry then. For frightening you.'

'Apologies accepted' she grinned.

'I'm Rick by the way. Rick Rodgers' he said, extending his right hand to her.

'Kate Beckett' she answered, shaking it briefly.

They stared at each other in silence, a little unsure of what to say next.

'So what are you doing here?' Kate asked tentatively.

'Oh, you know, just hanging around… I found the address of this place in the directory this week when I was sick, so I just thought I'd give it a try. It's pretty cool actually' he said.

She smiled as she recognized the look she saw so very often on her grandfather's face; the one of an excited little boy in front of a toy store.

'How about you?' he asked.

'My granddad is really into this kind of stuff… We always do all kinds of crazy experiments when I'm at his place. He says he does them for me but I think he's the one who enjoys them the most in fact'

'He's the guy that went with Mr. Drake?'

'Yeah, that's him'

'He must be a pretty cool granddad to have. I mean, if I had a granddad, I'd like him to do all sorts of stuff with me'

'Well he's a lot of fun to be with' she grinned. 'Aren't you with anyone?'

'Nah, I came here on my own. Took the subway! My mother would _never_ bring me to a place like this one'

'She's strict?'

'No, not really, she's just… not really into magic tricks. She's more of a dramatic kind of person. She's an actress, Martha Rodgers, maybe you've heard of her'

'I _have_ heard of her!' Kate said excitedly. 'My mom has been bringing me to plays since I was seven; we've seen her more than once on stage. So she's your mom? Wow, wait until my mom hears about this!'

Rick looked down at her sympathetically. 'Well yes, she is, but you know it's not _all__that__exciting_. She's just my crazy mom, that's all'

'And she lets you go around in town on your own? My parents would never do that.'

'Well she's alone with me and she's not home much, so… And anyway, I'm fourteen; I'm old enough to take the subway alone. How old are _you_, anyway?'

'Twelve' she admitted, obviously embarrassed by her young age.

I didn't seem to bother him much.

'And you're a girl. It's more dangerous out there for girls than for boys… My mom wouldn't let me go around if I were a girl. I'd probably be forbidden to leave the house without an escort or something.'

They smiled at each other for a few seconds and that silence allowed Kate to think that _she__had__actually__talked__with__a__kid__of__her__age__ – __well,__more__or__less__ – __just__for__the__sake__of__socializing__and__that__she__was_enjoying_it._

'_Louloute_?' a familiar voice called her from behind, causing her to turn to her granddad.

'Hey Papa, you discovered anything cool yet?'

Paul placed a protective hand on his granddaughter's shoulder.

'Mr. Drake showed me his vanishing cabinet but he had to go back to his work. You really should see it, it's awesome'

'Wait, he has a _vanishing__cabinet_?' Rick exclaimed. 'That is _so_ cool!'

'Yes, it is! It works really well; he actually made _me_ disappear with it!'

'Do you think he could show me?'

'I'm pretty sure he's busy right now but maybe if you come back another time…' Paul said.

He suddenly seemed to realize he had been talking excitedly with a very young teenager and frowned, causing Kate to suppress a laugh as she followed his trail of thoughts easily by simply reading his face.

'You and Kate having a good time?' he asked, taking back his granddad's role.

'Yeah, we were just, you know, talking…' Rick said.

'Mom is a great fan of his mom's work' Kate intervened, 'and he likes magic, just like you and I'

'Well that's great, sweetie, but we should be heading home, take a cab, it's getting late. We can order some pizza when we get home. Does this young man need a ride?' Paul asked.

'Oh, I'll probably call a cab myself, my mother would be mad if she knew I took the subway after seven' Rick explained.

'Then maybe we could share one. Go to your place first, and make sure you go home'

'Well, yeah, that'd be cool. Thanks'

The three of them gave the girl near the cashier a nod and got out of the shop from where they walked to a busier street so they could hail a cab. One quickly parked in front of them and they all got into the backseat.

The ride to Rick's building was very silent and all of them got out of the cab to say goodbye to him. He tried paying for part of the ride but Paul refused so he just shook his hand and thanked him before turning to Kate.

'It was nice meeting you, Kate Beckett' he grinned.

'Nice to meet you too' she said, almost murmuring it, feeling very shy all at once. 'Maybe we'll see each other again at the magic shop'

'Maybe, who knows?' Rick said before closing the door to his building.

He rushed upstairs, not bothering to wait for the elevator, and burst into the apartment just in time to see his mother coming out of the bathroom with some kind of weird cream on her face.

'Hi mother' he said, crashing on the couch and taking off his shoes.

'Good evening darling. What have you been up to all day? I thought you were still stuck with that weird virus of yours' she said, sitting down next to him in her robe.

'Well, it's gone know, so I went to some magic tricks shop, it was kind of cool' he said.

'On your own?' – noticing her son's disapproving look she said - 'I know you're fourteen but Manhattan is tough, even for grown-ups.'

'I _know_, mother, that's why I took a cab with some girl I met at the shop'

At the minute he said that word, he wished he hadn't.

'A _girl_? Really? What's her name? What school does she go to?'

'Her name is Kate, and I don't know what school she goes to. All I know is her mom and she are great fans of yours, if that makes sense' he joked.

'Well she seems to be an amazing girl, that Kate of yours' Martha said, visibly charmed by the idea of having fans.

'And you'll probably never meet her, since I don't even have her phone number or anything, so that settles it' Rick said. 'I'm going to head to bed now'

'Aren't you hungry?'

'Not really, no. My throat still hurts'

'Oh well. Goodnight sweetheart'

'Night'

After brushing his teeth and putting on his pajamas, he lied awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling once again thinking about the deep green eyes that belonged to the pretty girl he had met in the shop.

Taken by a sudden inspiration, he took out his pen and notebook, sitting down more comfortably.

And he began to write.

xXx

**There you go! Sorry again about the delay. I'll try to post more frequently from now on, I swear. I haven't written anything yet for the next chapter though so you just might have to wait a little longer.**

**Have a nice day/night/whatever it is wherever you are!**

**Sophie**


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